A La Carte
by snshyne
Summary: O/S. Bella likes to explore sexually and Edward loves her enough to let her try. Will Alice become a part of their fun? M/AH/OOC/Lemons/Language. E/B, A/B, A/B/E.


**A/N**

**I do not own these characters, just this particular plot mess.**

**This o/s is an example of those places where my mind goes and I have no control. **

**Thank you to my beta babies cclore and PhoenixMP3 for putting up with me. Thank you to 107yearoldvirgin and elusivetwilight for lending me their eyes and opinions. I puffy heart you all.**

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**A La Carte**

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"Did we hire some new people I wasn't aware of?" I asked Emily, the secretary I shared with Jane and Demetri.

"It's a batch of temps for the switch over," she explained as I stepped into my office, looking over the stack of messages she handed me.

_Mom._

_Dad._

_Mr. Vasilli._

_Mom again. _

_Mrs. Santiago._

I didn't want to return any of those calls; they could wait. I turned toward the pane glass window that looked out onto the main floor as a blur whipped by in a flash. I craned my head to catch a glimpse of what it was when I saw it again.

"Hi, I'm Alice," the girl said, sticking her hand out to people as she passed by.

_Who had that much energy at 7:30 in the morning?_

I watched as she floated through the office. Her attire was eclectic, but chic - a simple peasant dress paired with shiny leggings and reptile adorned heels. No doubt a reflection of her personality. I noticed that her nails were painted black with the exception of the middle finger on each hand that was a shocking shade of pink. The same pink as the earrings that hung from her lobes.

She had bangs, which a lot of people just should never try, but it worked for her. They were a little longer at the outset and faded into her shoulder length, razor cut, inky black hair.

She turned back in my direction and wrapped her lips around the straw of her iced coffee as she headed to her destination around the corner. Immediately, I started to wonder what it would feel like to have those lips on me. Or maybe, not likely, but maybe, see them wrapped around Edward's hard shaft.

Don't misunderstand me. I loved cock. I've been told too much at times. As if such a thing was actually possible. And at the end of the day, I still went home to Edward. I just found myself hoping, sometime in the very near future, Alice would come too.

I watched her for a few days. Saw how she glided around the office, giggled lightly with co-workers, noted the care she took in her appearance. She was delicate and darkly beautiful. I knew we could have fun with her, but I wanted to try her out first.

Something about her told me she would need to be softly coaxed into the experience of _both_ Edward and I. In the past, I had never been with anyone and not had Edward present. So my delay was also a product of needing to talk it out with him first.

Edward was the modern day equivalent to a Renaissance Man. Writer, painter, poet, sculptor, musician, lover. His free spirit was everything I needed and more. It allowed me the freedom to express my sexual desires and still be madly in love.

I used to feel shame and embarrassment at my deeply rooted need to try new things, to experiment with what was available to me. I used to cry myself to sleep at night from the anguish of trying to deny myself things I felt I wanted.

Lover after lover left me because I was 'too weird' for them or they had a problem sharing, even if it was only once.

Jake was fine when he wanted to fuck my ass, but when I suggested experimenting with a plug for him, he called me a sodomite and bolted.

Alec loved it when he could watch me pleasure another girl and especially loved to join the fun. You should have seen the look on his face when I invited Felix back to my loft to play. He said he was going to pay the tab at the bar, but he never came back. Felix and I had fun that night, but I still wished it could have been both of them. I'm convinced he was terrified at the sheer size of Felix. Perhaps a little penis envy?

Honestly, counting the failures of men in my life was ridiculously depressing.

When I met Edward, everything changed. We met at a party held by my friends Rosalie and Emmett. I met Rosalie in college - we had been roommates. We fought about everything and I swear I hated her guts. I was getting ready to file for a room change assignment when I walked in on her with two guys and a girl. Apparently, she forgot to put the hair tie on the door that afternoon.

At first, I was shocked at the scene before me. Rosalie laying on her bed with one guy stuffing her pussy with his cock, the girl riding her face while the same girl sucked off the second guy. Rosalie always seemed uptight and with a permanent broomstick up her ass. I never in a million years expected to see that.

Needless to say, our relationship shifted drastically at that point.

We actually started to hang out and talk, beyond her bitching about my stock of diet coke hogging the fridge and me hating her hair all over the bathroom counter. It was amazing how much we had in common and it was nice to be around someone who felt free in their sexuality. I was surprised to find out Rose thought I was some naive, frigid, prissy girl who would judge her.

If only we had talked in the beginning, like our RA suggested, we might have saved each other months of screaming matches. I wouldn't have had to spend so many nights in disgusting boys' dorms, after empty sex, to avoid her icy glare. She wouldn't have been sneaking out in the morning, before I woke up, to avoid another argument over the fact that her freesia shampoo made me want to vomit.

The bond over what made us so different from other people was stronger than the trivial bullshit we argued over.

For the record, we did attempt to engage in a little sex play with one of the frat boys on campus. But the moment Rose and I kissed, we both fell out laughing in hysterics and couldn't take it any further than that. I left her alone to give the kid whatever he was game for that night and went back to our room and turned on some porn.

Eventually, Rosalie met Emmett; they got married and were now active in the swinging, sex party scene - often throwing their own parties for the fun of it. Parties I often attended and had fun at.

Edward was a friend of Emmett's, having met because Edward did a few commissioned pieces for several of Emmett's architectural firm's projects. Emmett would tell me about him, but I always ignored it, always recalling the previous failures of my _committed_ love life. It was much simpler to meet people, have a few drinks and see if I wanted to see them sexually after that.

Edward and I finally did meet at one of their parties. I showed up, Rosalie shoved a drink in my hand and Emmett ushered me towards the fireplace in the front room where this bronze-haired piece of perfection was standing. Someone was talking to him and he laughed slightly, which put this fuckhot, crooked grin on his face and made a shiver roll down my spine.

Emmett pulled the guy away and placed me in front of Edward, introducing us quickly and walking away with a wink. I couldn't be sure if he was winking at me or Edward. Edward and I clicked instantly. He made me laugh, my skin reacted in goosebumps and fiery heat when he gently touched my arm. I was intrigued by his natural ease and confidence with life in general and I wondered if that translated into the bedroom. Moreover, he had been there at one of Emmett and Rosalie's parties, which meant he was less likely to judge me.

Part of me was terrified of the way I was reacting to him, but the other part was practically salivating at the potential. As the night progressed I drank more, which made me more bold, but not in any way stupid. I searched for him in the party, but came up short and I figured he had left. Disappointed and already worked up at the mental images of Edward's long fingers dancing on my skin, I honed in on someone else.

Mike, Marcus, Melvin, I couldn't remember his name. I was talking to him and flirting shamelessly. I could tell by the way he was leaning in toward me and the way his eyes kept darting to my lips that I already had him, but the flirting was part of my game and I had to play it out.

I saw Edward enter the room out of the corner of my eye. He had a drink in his hand and some girl on the other. We made eye contact as he stubbed out his cigarette in the ash tray on the table top, but the girl grabbed his attention again and he turned away from me.

I didn't like that.

I remembered asking what's-his-face if he'd want to make the night a little more interesting. Subtly implying that he, in fact, was not interesting at all. Before he could answer, I walked up to ditsy-tits and kissed her, before turning my attention to Edward, giving him a seductive wink, grabbing what's-his-face's hand and heading off in the direction of one of the spare rooms - the Purple Room.

The Purple Room in the house was my favorite. It's the room I always used and would remain locked during these parties until I arrived at the door with the key. It was a perk of being best friends with the hostess.

I unlocked the door and entered the room, pulling what's-his-face in with me and pushing him on the bed, _accidentally_ forgetting to lock the door behind me. I made quick work of his pants and pulled them down. He was fidgety and annoying as he grabbed at my dress and pulled at my hair. It kind of reminded me of fucking a high school boy. How impatient they were, but not in a primal way. In the way a child gets antsy waiting for a promised treat.

He calmed down the minute my hand made contact with his cock, which kind of left something to be desired. I silently hoped Edward got my hint and would follow me in here because if I had to be fucked by what's-his-face, I was going to be going home to my favorite vibrating friend later.

I knelt down between his legs and started to suck him off. By the way his hips were thrusting, I didn't think it would take long.

I heard the door handle turn and something told me it was him. Edward. I refused to look up. I wanted to play with him, let him think I was unaffected by his presence. Make him want me, as he watched me with someone else.

He had brought the girl, I knew because, I could smell her cheap perfume. It made me want to gag and not from the unimpressive cock in my mouth. I continued to pleasure what's-his-face**,** more out of the thrill of being watched than anything. I felt Edward move behind me and heard the quiet puff of the seat cushion as he sat in the chair against the wall.

I heard a set of very soft whispers I couldn't make out the words to as I let my fingers trail down to my pussy that was getting wetter with every second he remained in the room. The bed squeaked and I opened my eyes to see ditsy-tits start to run her hands on what's-his-face's chest and kissing his neck. I couldn't have cared less. He trailed a hand between her legs, up her too tiny skirt and I heard her gasp as he finger fucked her.

I was bored. The only thing entertaining me was my own hand, lightly tracing circles around my clit.

Ditsy-tits' hand came down and started to fondle what's-his-face's balls. Her hands with her nasty fake, claw-like nails were now in my face. I pulled back and placed her hand on his shaft, resting on my heels, as they played with one another.

Behind me, I heard the familiar sound of a rolling zipper and I think I whimpered with excitement. Quickly, faster than I realized, Edward was behind me on his knees and his hands pawed at my flesh under my dress in a frenzied manner. I felt delirious at his touch as he gripped my ass, my breasts, my shoulders, my stomach, before finally letting his beautiful fingers delve into the place I wanted him the most.

A low hum reverberated in his chest as he pressed into me and I felt his hardness at my back.

"Fuck me, please," I remembered mumbling through a dazed lust cloud.

A loud gasp escaped me as without words or pretenses, he spread my legs a little bit more and thrust into me from behind. I was so glad I decided not to wear panties that night. My head rested against his shoulder as he fucked me good and hard. Animalistic grunts filled the room with shrieks of pleasure.

I felt high and grounded at the same time as he pulled at my hair and tilted my head to crash his lips to mine, while his other hand toyed with my hardened nipple. I gripped onto the bed in front of me for leverage. The taste of gin, tobacco, and peppermint danced across my tongue as our lips kissed and teeth nibbled. I came hard and practically screamed as my first orgasm ripped through me. I was panting and I briefly remembered making eye contact with what's-his-face and ditsy-tits before I was laying on the floor, on my back, with Edward hovering over me.

My legs wrapped around him as I gripped his hair and cried out from the sensitivity of his pelvis hitting my clit so soon after I had just came. The force of his thrusts had me sliding across the floor and I could feel the makings of a carpet burn against my back, but I just didn't care.

He snarled his way through his release, while I climaxed again at the sensation of the sound in my ear. We crumbled into a heap of flesh on the floor, both panting for air but refusing to part. It had been the most exhilarating sex of my life. No one had ever made me feel so alive and sated. And every time since then, has just gotten better and better.

I thought I passed out because the only thing I remembered was waking up practically covered by Edward's body in the warmth of the king size bed in The Purple Room.

A year later, Edward and I were still together. I was getting antsy. Itching to play, but I wasn't sure how Edward would take it. Although he knew about my past, in the time between the party and now, it had only been me and him. The sex was always amazing and we played with toys, tried a million positions and I learned he liked to be tied up and watched as I played with myself. However, I wasn't sure how he would feel about introducing other people into our sex life on occasion. I also wasn't sure if I could handle someone else touching him.

It was Rosalie who helped me overcome that particular fear when she told me I could set the limits. Revealing that, when she and Emmett played, Emmett had no problem letting Rosalie say who could and couldn't touch him, and vice versa. I argued with her that they were married and thus, it was different all together. She told me that was the case even before they were married and just used to play together.

I contemplated it for weeks. I loved Edward for sure and knew he loved me. I was so unsure of taking this step, because letting go and being me always came back to bite me in the ass, and not in the way I liked. People were so intolerant. It was a shame too, because we could have so much fun. I laughed now, when I thought of past lovers; especially Jake. He's married to some girl named Leah, with his two kids and white fucking picket fence.

I saw him at the grocery store one night and he looked tired, drained, and just awful. Nothing like the beefcake, full of vigor guy I had known when we were together. There was a spot on his shirt that I could only guess must have been baby drool or something equally disgusting. His cart was full of sugary cereal, whole milk, chicken breasts and vegetables. I had oysters, wine, cheese, chocolate, rib eye steaks and strawberries in my basket. I was glad he left me at that point and he didn't lock me into some droll existence I was never meant to fill. That life was great for some people, just not me.

One night, Edward and I were out at a party for one of his artist friends, Jasper, who had a showcase downtown. I had been stealthily eyeing various party-goers, my mind going through various scenarios with each one, at least I thought so, until Edward called me out. Did I mention he's very perceptive?

"Which one do you want?" he asked, leaning down to whisper in my ear.

My nipples immediately reacted to his proximity and the feel of his breath on my skin.

"I'm not sure what you mean." I tried to sound confused, but instead ended up sounding incredibly turned on. I was such a bad liar.

"Coy doesn't suit you, Bella. I know you. I know you've been itching for some multi-player fun for a while now."

I stood there and my jaw dropped to the floor because he knew. _He knew all this time._

"I'm sorry," I apologized, finding my voice.

Edward wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me towards the back of a monstrous sculpture, shielding us from the general party population. He turned me around to face him and I felt like a nuked potato under his gaze.

"Bella, don't apologize for who you are or what you want. Life is too short to live it with apologies and regrets."

"But...I love you and only you and I don't want to lose you over this."

"I'm not going anywhere," he said as he traced a long finger along my jaw.

"How can I have both? It's never worked in the past."

"You never had _me_ in the past."

"But will I have you in the future?"

"Of course, baby. You have me forever. This changes nothing. It's just for fun."

"You'd do that for me?"

"I'd do anything for you, Bella. Anything."

I kissed him then and pushed him into the wall behind him, completely rocked by his words**.** I would have crawled into his chest if I could have, to feel the heart that beat so strongly for me.

We broke apart and he smiled down at me, which made my heart flutter.

"I have one condition," he nodded, waiting for me to finish, "I say who can touch you when and where."

He laughed a hearty, soulful laugh that made his eyes twinkle.

"Is that all?"

"Yes. I don't like to share."

"I don't want you to."

"You don't care? I mean, do you care if someone else touches me?"

"I think I can handle it," he said with a shrug, "besides I already know who you belong to."

I kissed him again for his selflessness in letting me explore just because I wanted to.

"Let's go hunt, shall we?" I squealed as he grabbed my hand and we weaved through the crowd like two wild predators on the prowl.

Irina came home with us that night.

She was fun, but too aggressive so we never saw her again. After Irina, there was Maria; she was way too demure. Drove me fucking insane that she flinched so damn much.

The night we had Seth was...amusing. He was way more into Edward than me. Edward was a good sport about it, but later he told me he gets more fun out of watching me with other people. Then we had very, very aggressive, raw, passionate sex. I think he was trying to prove something to me. He didn't need to, but I appreciated the gesture.

Edward was always there, supportive and willing. While he was willing to let me explore my deepest fantasies, I wasn't really in a place to be so willing to share him. It was hypocritical of me, I know. But I was fiercely possessive and only let him touch and be touched by others in ways I allowed and dictated. Victoria could attest to that. She now knows all too well the consequences of touching what was mine without my approval.

We had been with Victoria twice. I was always weary of her, but there was something about her that was alluring. The fiery red hair, pale skin, and very rosy nipples were hard to stay away from. Plus, she exuded a sense of sexual confidence that one rarely sees.

Foolishly, I left her alone with Edward for two minutes. I had roped him to the bed, something he thoroughly enjoyed. Unable to touch me or himself while he watched me pleasure myself or someone else. Tortuous pleasure. I asked him about it once and he said that since he lived a life of immediate self-gratification and freedom that he enjoyed the pressure of being bound. The way it made the blood pump in his ears, the tension in his muscles while he strained to want to touch me and the burning release afterwards were all exhilarating.

That night with Victoria, I left the room to change the thermostat because the combination of the candles burning and our combined body heat was making the room stifling.

When I returned, Victoria had straddled him and was rocking over him violently. Red waves swirled in the air like flames as she tossed her head about in pleasure. A shrill scream escaped me as I hurled myself at her and yanked her off of him by that same captivating hair. Somehow, I dragged her down the hall and opened the door, tossing her out on her ass. I screamed at her, but I couldn't remember what I said.

I then tossed her clothes out as well and went back to my room, still enraged, to see Edward laying on the bed, still tied up and looking both horrified and disgusted. Then he smiled at me and I hurried over to him, threw myself at him and kissed him passionately. Both worked up, I straddled him and sank down hard, causing us both to grunt and cry out.

His hips met mine thrust for thrust as I rode him with reckless abandon, cathartically fucking him to shed my anger and fear. It didn't last long, but it was good. It was what I needed. I collapsed onto his chest as he kissed my hair and whispered sweet words to soothe me.

I untied him and he immediately wrapped me in his arms, telling me how much he loved me and that he would never want anyone else. He did everything for me. I believed him. I knew it to be true, but the sight of her touching him made me see red and not just her hair. I wanted to kill her. Tear her apart and burn the pieces.

Edward was mine.

Mine and mine alone.

So I'd been reluctant to invite another woman to our bed. But Alice seemed different. Harmless, but exciting. And the way she flitted about, I bet she'd be more than willing once the moment was right.

She was temping. I learned from my secretary that she was working odd jobs to pay her way through fashion school. We were switching databases and had hired a few temps for the next three months to work on preparing all of our files for the transition. Alice had a natural ease about her. She had been here for four days and already was friendly with everyone. I knew if she got her hands on the big bosses upstairs, they'd want to keep her. It wouldn't work though, you could tell by looking at her that she couldn't be tied to a desk.

About ten days after she started, I got up the nerve to approach Edward about it. I was hoping that he wouldn't be slighted by my idea to try Alice first before I brought him into the mix. I just didn't want to scare her away.

We were in the kitchen of my loft; he was chopping some vegetables for the lo-mein we were making together while I uncorked another bottle of wine and waited for the wok to heat up.

"Hey, baby?" I called to catch his attention.

"Hmm?"

If I wasn't careful, I'd get distracted and never get through this. His arms were flexing with each stroke of the blade in his hand, his hair that had grown a tad too long was flopping in his face, and his jeans were hung low on his hips. Low enough for me to see he wasn't wearing anything underneath them. I involuntarily licked my lips.

"Did you need something?" he asked, popping a string of bell pepper into my mouth and then kissing me softly.

"I wanted to talk to you about something. There's a girl and I want to play with her."

"Okay."

"But I think I should play with her first before we play together."

There was a skip in Edward's chopping, kind of like the way a scratched CD skips, before it resumed it's sound. I poured two glasses of wine and slid one over to him. I picked mine up and drained it before resting the glass on the counter and pouring some more.

"Alright."

"That's it?" I walked closer to him timidly.

"Yeah. Go for it." He turned to me and winked before pulling me to him and kissing me passionately. "I already told you, I know who you belong to."

I smiled against his mouth and he dropped the knife, deepening the kiss and pushing me up onto the counter. He pulled my shorts down and undid his jeans, all the while continuing to kiss me. He reached behind him quickly and turned off the stove before pushing his hips forward and entering me swiftly. I held onto the brim of the counter so as not to go flying backwards.

Eventually we got around to eating lo-mein. Naked.

**X-x-X**

"Miss Swan?"

"Hmm?" I looked up to see Alice standing in my doorway with a box in her arms.

"Mrs. Sinclair said that these needed to come to you. We weren't sure what to do with them."

"How old are you, Alice?" I asked as I walked around to lean on the front of my desk.

"Twenty-two."

"Please, call me Bella. Miss Swan is entirely too formal and I'm not much older than you." Alice nodded. "Well, come in. What has Jane sent you in here with?"

"I guess these are files that need to be re-done or something. She didn't really say. She just rolled her eyes, shoved the box at me and told me to 'take it to Miss Swan.' I know you're Miss Swan, I mean Bella, because I've kinda seen you around a little. And one of the temps, Eric, he has a serious crush on you."

Alice rambled. It was cute.

"Bring the box over here," I said with a smile as I gestured towards the circular table in the corner.

She practically danced over and placed the box on the table. Then she waited patiently, humming to herself and I sorted through some of the contents quickly to see what was in front of me.

"Oh. These are the Aeteara files for that case we had last summer. The girl who worked on it was fired and I was promoted to replace her. Looking at these, I'm not surprised."

"So...?" Alice asked as I stood staring at the box and trying to decide what to do.

"I really don't want to deal with these," I said with a sigh.

"I could help," she offered. "I mean, technically, I'd still be working for the firm. Just not under Jane. She likes to shout and watch us suffer. She's a merciless tyrant!" Alice clapped her hand over her mouth as if to retract her honest declaration.

I laughed.

**X-x-X**

Over the next couple of weeks, Alice came to my office every day and pretty much stayed there until she clocked out in the evenings. In that time, I got to know more about her. Alice was a talker. She told me about the tiny apartment she used to share with her best friend Jessica, but that Jessica got married young and moved out. I learned that she had been working odd jobs for the last year to help pay her design school tuition, where classes started in the fall.

One thing about Alice that was amusing was that she would zone out for a moment and then have to whip out a colored pencil and jot something down before she could move on to anything else. She explained to me that she often envisioned her designs as already completed before she had even started them and needed to get down a rough idea before she forgot.

I would often ask to see what she drew, but she insisted she would have to show me the finished design, stating she felt more confident with a finished product.

Her favorite color in the world was yellow and she had dreamed of owning a yellow Porsche and living in a yellow house with a yellow cocker spaniel named Heidi. She rarely slept and had an unnatural reservoir of energy, which I'm sure was helped by the unhealthy amounts of caffeine I saw her consume in a day.

Alice was also far more intelligent than people often gave her credit for. One would think she was a space cadet of the highest order, but they'd be wrong. She was a Rhodes Scholar and had a bachelor's in metaphysics, but her passion was fashion. So after undergrad, she chose to pursue other avenues. She was fully aware of how people saw her though and used their perceptive handicap to her advantage.

I lost count of how many times I'd seen her get free coffee from people. Not to mention the account executives that picked straws to buy her lunch everyday.

With every day that passed and everything I learned about Alice, I became more and more convinced that we would have her. She and I just had a very natural comfort level with one another.

As the deadline for the software shift was inching closer and it seemed the project was about a week behind schedule. Employees and temps were pitching in to help bridge the gap. Sometimes, people ended up working fifteen to eighteen hour days.

On one night in particular, I had agreed to supervise the temps who were staying late and let everyone else go home. Edward had a sudden inspiration for a sculpture and I knew he would probably be home very late or be sleeping in his studio tonight. If he slept at all.

Tonight was also the night I decided I was finally going to test Alice.

"Oh, crap!" Alice declared, causing myself, Eric, and Lauren to look up from what we were doing. "It's so late, I'm going to miss the last train," she pouted. "I'll have to catch a cab now. Shit!"

Lauren went back to the file box at her feet, always completely unconcerned with those around her.

"I'd offer to give you a ride, but I'm meeting some of my buddies after this and I'm not going home," Eric offered with a small smile.

"It's fine. It's my own fault for not checking the time and making sure I got out of here on time."

I had my perfect in for getting to Alice, and I wasn't going to waste it.

"I can take you. We'll just pop your address into my GPS and we'll be all set."

"Are you sure? I mean, I don't want to impose or anything. It's not too much trouble?"

I just shook my head and moved to stand up. "I guess we all should head out then. It is pretty late."

As we walked out, a plan started to formulate in my mind.

"Ya know, this would be a great chance for me to see some of your designs."

Alice beamed as she slid into the front seat of my Mercedes and nodded in excitement.

The drive to her place was short, but she touched my arm no less than eight times as she talked about the different things she wanted to show me.

"Some of my earlier work isn't that great, but I'd love to show you so you can see the comparison and growth," she chatted as we walked up the stairs to her place.

Once inside, Alice got two wine glasses and settled them on the make shift coffee table in the living/dining room along with a bottle of red. "I remembered you said you prefer red to white, which is awesome because I only like red. It's so dramatic!" she said as she disappeared again.

She returned with an arm full of books, which resembled portfolios. Having Edward, I was quite familiar with a portfolio. He kept most of his at his studio, but there were some laying around the loft as well.

She sat Indian style on the floor next to my legs, her arm brushing against my calf as she placed the books on the table in front of us.

Time passed as we flipped through her books and sipped on wine. I knew I had to drive, so I made sure to stay within my own limit. Eventually, I ended up on the floor next to her, our thighs brushing against one another, slacks to bare flesh as Alice wore a dress today.

She talked excitedly about each piece and I listened, intrigued by her enthusiasm. I watched as she became more and more relaxed as we came to some of her newer designs. She was right, I could see the growth from one book to the next. Though none of them were awful as she had previously mentioned.

"This is beautiful," I stated when she showed me a book that seemed to be full of pieces, which contained things like ruffles as well as metal, lace and leather.

"I really like vintage stuff with a punk edge."

"Do these just come to you?"

"Sometimes. Or sometimes I get inspired by something. Like, this piece is based off of a red apple sitting on a white doily, atop a black lacquer table at this house I was nannying for." She flipped a few pages and showed me a red leather dress with a lace overlay. The lace was sheer and allowed the red leather to peek through, and there was black satin ribbon lining the hem. "I considered vinyl because I feel that vinyl is closer to the skin of an apple than leather, but it looked cheap."

I nodded.

"You're very talented, Alice." I lifted my hand to push the hair back off of her shoulder and exposed her neck.

"Thank you," she said in a soft voice.

"Do you know what else?" I asked and she shook her head. "You're very beautiful."

"You're beautiful too, Bella. And you smell nice."

"Thank you," I laughed softly.

"Alice?"

"Hm?"

"Hold still, okay? I want to try something. Don't move."

Doing as I asked, she stayed as still as a marble statue while I moved in closer and closer, inching my face towards hers. I didn't even think she took a breath, but she never took her eyes off me.

I leaned in, closing the gap between us and my lips brushed against hers. I kissed her softly, once, twice, testing her. She didn't move. I leaned in again, kissing her longer this time. I felt her tongue peek out, only just a little bit, and I darted mine out to meet it. Alice moaned softly, opening up her mouth to me.

My hands went up and cupped her face as I turned my head in encouragement to deepen the kiss. Being so close to her, I could already tell she was relaxed at my touch, but I needed to make sure this was okay. I wasn't going to pressure her into anything.

Eventually, I broke apart the kiss and looked into her big grey eyes that were wide with questions.

"Are you okay?" She nodded. "Are you sure?"

"Can...can we do that again?"

She smiled brightly as I took her lips with mine again, tasting the spice of Shiraz on her tongue. She seemed to enjoy it as she became more and more bold in her kisses. Eventually, her hands slid up my arms and removed my hands from her cheeks, placing them on her breasts as she wove her fingers into my hair.

It occurred to me that Alice was far more bold than I thought. I ran my thumbs over her nipples, visible bumps in the fabric of her dress and she let out a soft moan into my mouth. Spurred on by her pleasure, I shifted to be in front of her and pushed her backwards against the base of the couch. Her legs uncrossed from their Indian style position and she bent them at the knees, allowing me to rest between them.

Her skin was very soft, her mouth very warm as I tasted and teased my way over her body. I was delighted in her soft sighs when my hand grazed her bare thigh and the occasional squeal when I would use my teeth gently on places like her ear and neck.

"You can tell me to stop," I whispered, my hand making its way past the hem of her dress. Alice shook her head. From her body language, I knew she didn't want me to, but it was important that I give her the choice.

"I've only kissed a woman before. In undergrad." I nodded. I wasn't going to push her too far tonight. I really just wanted to see how her body would respond to my touch. I wanted to see how she reacted and behaved to this kind of stimuli and try and gauge if I could handle her with me and my Edward.

My hand, now under the skirt of her dress, moved gently up the soft skin of her thigh as I continued to make her pliable with my kisses and soft strokes to her hair. She was breathing heavily, but her body was in a total state of relaxation in front of me.

I paused when I reached the edge of her panties but continued once she thrust her hips forward in a silent plea. I ran the knuckles of my hand over her fabric covered pussy and she whimpered against me. I could feel the heat and wetness through the satin. I didn't want to break contact with her, for it might disturb the balance we had going on in that moment.

I opted for pushing her panties to the side to feel what was behind them. Lightly, I traced her lips, feeling the wetness spread around by my fingers. I gingerly slipped a finger down her folds to her waiting clit and applied some light pressure, causing Alice to moan.

With two fingers, I drew circles around her clit and Alice's hips started to thrust. I wondered if she was a screamer or not. I replaced my fingers with my thumb and delved into her slit, making her gasp.

"Oh, please," she whimpered. Her eyes opened and locked on mine for a brief moment and I saw the lust and desire radiating there. She was definitely enjoying this.

"Please what?" I asked, liking to play with my new friend.

"Please. I wanna come." Her breathing was labored, chest heaving and calling my attention.

I leaned forward and latched onto her right breast through her dress with my mouth and picked up the tempo with my fingers. Alice's moans became louder, but only slightly. I listened as she hummed in pleasure and asked to come again. I wanted her to.

Keeping my mouth on her breasts, I took my other hand and began a counter clockwise circular motion against her clit while I continued to thrust into her with my left hand.

"Bella, please!" she whined.

Using the same hand against her clit, I gave it a light pinch and smiled to myself when her whole body jumped.

"Oh, god!" she cried, and I knew she was close. I gave her clit one more pinch and I watched as her back arched and her hands flew up to her nipples as she cried out in her release. An elegant cry that was kind of like a happy squeal. Her eyes were shut tight, but I watched as she came down from her high. Her skin flushed with a small smile on her face.

I sat back on my heels and grabbed a napkin from the table to wipe my hands. Alice's eyes opened then and she blushed for the first time since I'd met her.

"That was...uh...thank you?'

I just shook my head. "No thanks necessary."

"Do you want to? I mean, should I?" she asked, motioning to the general area of my crotch.

"Maybe some other time. I have to get going. Edward will be waiting for me." At least I hoped he was done in the studio, if not, I could go to him. I really, really needed him right now.

"Oh. Is this okay? Like, will he be mad?"

"Actually, he's looking forward to meeting you some day," I told her as she walked me to the door. I gave her a pointed look and she gasped with an "Oh" when it dawned on her what I was referring to.

"You mean...?"

"Yes. But only if you want to."

"I think...that could be fun."

"See you soon, then." I gave her a kiss on the cheek before I walked out and headed back to my car.

Alice really was a sweet girl. I think she'd be fun to play with for Edward and I. As I drove off, I texted him to see if he was home. I was so wet for him, and it was starting to be uncomfortable. I was closer to his studio now and if he was there, I didn't want to go home to only have to come back out.

"Did you finish your sculpture? Where are you? ~ B

_I'm on my way home. ~ E_

I'm wet and I want you. ~ B

_I'm hard and I'm ready. ~ E_

A huge grin played out on my face and I clenched my thighs together in a fruitless effort to stop the wetness from seeping out. On the twenty minute drive, I thought about what just happened with Alice. I had a good time. I always had a good time when pleasure was involved. No matter who it was. She was sweet and kinda tasted like pretty flowers. Lilacs maybe.

She wasn't too demure and not too aggressive. I think her outgoing personality had a lot to do with that. It was cute how she wanted to return the favor, but it wasn't like that at all. Sometimes, I just liked to play with people. I didnt always get off with them, but I had fun watching them lose it.

That's what this was about with her. I wanted to watch her, get an understanding of how she would work sexually.

It was fun, but it was lacking. It was lacking because Edward wasn't there.

Heading into my loft, all the lights were off and I screamed in shock as Edward's strong arms grabbed me around the waist as the door clicked shut behind me. He was naked; I felt the heat of his chest against my back and the hardness of his dick against my ass.

"So? How was she?"

"It was fun, but I want you. Now!"

He pressed his hips forward with a groan as his hands started to work at the buttons on my shirt. I made quick work of removing my shoes and pants. All the while, we took a few steps forward to the wall just in front of us. I rested my hands against the wall, leaning forward and pushing my ass out, inviting him in.

He palmed and slapped my ass a few times, making me even more turned on and aching for him to fill me. I was about to shout at him to hurry the fuck up when he spread my legs a little further and slipped into me. We both moaned and were still for a fraction of a moment.

But only a fraction. Edward began a fast and frenzied thrust, growling as I moaned and panting as I gasped. It was hard and fast and fucking glorious. I loved it when he took me like this. I gripped onto the wall for support so as not to fall over or be lifted by the force of his thrusts; this has happened before. I had a nasty bruise on my forehead for weeks as evidence.

I wished I had made it to the bedroom or even the dining area so I could see him in the mirror or large window. Watch the power I felt as he drilled into me.

I reached down between my legs and began to toy with my clit - pinching, flicking, circling.

Fuck!

My orgasm hit me with such force that I couldn't even get sound out. I was so wound up and so fucking hot for him that I was speechless. His grip on my hips tightened as his speed increased for just a moment before he spilled into me with a snarl.

I stood up with his help, my back resting against his now sweaty chest. The smell of our sex all around us. He ran his strong hands down my stomach to my pussy where we were still connected**.** I gasped when he hit my clit. His hands came back up and held onto my breasts, pinching my nipples between his fingers.

I turned to capture his lips with mine, delighting in the taste of spearmint, tobacco and Edward.

Eventually, we broke apart. It was well after two in the morning, but I was not tired at all. I did, however, want to get in bed. Edward and I strolled down the hall, his arms around my waist as he walked behind me.

Once we got into bed he wasted no time asking me about Alice. I told him everything from how she tasted to the way she responded to my touch. How she was bolder than I originally thought and that she was open to playing with us.

"I can smell her on you, ya know. I sensed it when you came home."

"You've always been sensitive to smell." He shrugged. "It's okay, then?" I asked.

"Set it up," he said, rolling over and pulling me on top of him. He started kissing me again and I knew tonight was going to be one of those nights where I didn't fall asleep until after the moon had given away to the sun.

Not that I was complaining or anything.

**X-x-X**

About a week later, Alice finished the work she was doing with me and was sent back into the fold with the rest of the temps. It was for the best if we were going to be fucking her; I supposed she shouldn't directly report to me.

We had not done anythingsince that night in her apartment. She did ask me when she would meet Edward and I told her when I was ready for it, which was the truth. Alice was pretty and outgoing, fun and free-spirited. I didn't want Edward to become attached to her. So I was biding my time, until the project was nearly done. If I waited, we could have her and then she would be out of our lives and ease some of my anxiety over the situation.

Deep down, I knew he loved me and only me. But sometimes those inadequate feelings from my childhood and teen years resurfaced and I'd find myself in a tunnel of doubt.

The Thursday before Alice's last day, I called her into my office and told her where to meet me by ten Friday night. I wasn't sure if I wanted her to come to my loft, but in the end I decided fuck it. We always played there, this was no different. She was just the first girl to play with us since I threw Victoria out and it was contributing to my trepidation over the whole thing.

She giggled as she walked away, the excitement practically beaming out of her like sun rays.

Alice arrived at ten on the dot, wide eyed and a little fidgety**.** I ushered her into my loft and introduced her to Edward.

Edward was standing in the kitchen, barefoot with a pair of jeans slung low on his hips and a ribbed tank that clung to his upper body. His hair was still damp from the shower he tookas soon as he got home from his studio.

He looked up from the wine he was pouring and gave Alice a winning smile as he strolled over to shake her hand and kiss her cheek softly. Then he wrapped an arm around my waist and kissed my forehead as his hand traveled down to pat my ass.

Alice seemed to relax a little as she followed my lead into the open living room.

"Alice, like I told you earlier, you don't have to do anything you don't want to do." She nodded as we sat down on the couch.

Edward came in a moment later with a tray of some wine, fruit, cheese and crackers and set it down on the table. He came and sat next to me, which I thought was best. Edward can be...intense at times and I didn't want Alice to feel overwhelmed.

He rested against the back of the couch and slid his right arm around my waist so it was resting against my thigh.

There was idle chatteras we tried to warm Alice to the situation. Edward explaining he had always been the artistic type, even from a very young age. How his mother had to repaint the walls in his room many times until they finally bucked up and bought him a canvas. That his first instrument was a guitar, but the piano was his favorite.

Alice explained how she went to private school and got in trouble a lot for "stylistic improvements" to her uniform, but she just couldn't shake the design bug. It was cute to watch them in their artistic joy. As free loving as I am, I am much more methodical in action. I require a certain amount of order in my life.

I started to gently touch Alice. Soft caresses to her arms, a gentle hand brushing through her hair. She started to lean in towards me, her body language showing she was relaxing. Good.

Edward was kissing along the column of my neck and I was getting very excited. His hands ran along my waist and up my stomach, caressing me through my top.

I put a hand around Alice's neck and gave it a gentle tug, pulling her towards me where my mouth was waiting to taste her. She pressed forward, eyes focused on my lips and then closed them just as our mouths touched. I caressed her lips with mine, gently coaxing her tongue out to play. She sighed and scooted forward, resting her hands on my thighs.

I felt her jump when her hand came into contact with Edward's, he took one of her hands in his and gently drew it across my skin. He knew what I liked and I was willing to bet this was going to turn into a "please Bella" session. Fine by me.

Eventually, we gravitated towards the bedroom. Edward stood by while I helped Alice out of her sundress and she stepped out of her sandals. Earlier in the night, he and I had agreed to not tie him up because of the last time with Victoria. I just wasn't ready for that.

Alice was more bold this time and she took to removing my tank and shorts while kissing the newly exposed skin. It was nice. Sweet.

Edward came behind me then, his chest was now bare and I felt it press into my back. He snaked his muscular arms around my waist and leaned forward over my shoulder. I pulled Alice towards me then and kissed her soundly, then pushed her head towards Edward. She looked at me quizzically and I nodded, giving my permission for them to kiss.

Just as their lips touched, I placed a gentle finger across Alice's clit, while Edward's hand slipped between my legs, both of us gasping at the same time. Alice was wet, but I knew she could be wetter. I was sandwiched between them, Edward's hardness pressed against my lower back through his jeans and my hardened nipples rubbing against Alice's soft skin.

I felt her starting to quiver and I put my free hand on her waist to steady her, Edward breaking the kiss and leaning down to grab my neck with his teeth**,** as he reached out a hand to Alice's nipple**,** while still pumping me with his elegant fingers. I didn't want to come yet, but I knew it would be okay**,** if I could. I was lucky enough to be multi-orgasmic.

I hoped it was the same with Alice.

Just as I had the thought, her hand grabbed the hair over my left shoulder and her head fell forward, and she whimpered as she came. A pretty flush blooming across her skin. I removed my fingers and kissed her, pushing her back towards the bed, urging her to sit down.

Edward was hungry, I could feel it as I reached down to remove his hand. The tight grip on my waist and the taut muscles in his arms told me so. I turned around to face him, he had placed his wet fingers in his mouth and was now savoring my flavor on his tongue while staring at me with darkened eyes. I kissed him deeply. He grabbed my hair and I moaned as I made quick work of his jeans. They pooled at his feet as he stood before me fully naked. Edward often went commando.

He cupped my cheeks in his hands, softened from his sculpting clay and stared into my eyes for a moment. "It's all for you, Bella. Always for you," he stated. I knew what he was saying. It was the same thing he told me the first night we played with another person, the same thing he told me after my fit of rage over Victoria. He was doing this for me, because it was something I felt I needed.

He kissed me, my tongue darted out to dance with his. I completely forgot that Alice was in the room and for the first time in a while, I wondered if I really _needed_ it.

We moved over to the bed, where Alice was patiently waiting. She was looking down at her hands, almost as if she was trying to hide. I grabbed Edward's hand and stood him in front of Alice. His beautiful cock was hard and stood at full attention.

I crawled onto the bed and positioned myself behind Alice, rubbing soothing circles on her shoulders as I leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"Isn't his cock pretty?" I cooed and Alice nodded, her angled bangs bobbing with her head.

"Go ahead, touch it." A timid hand reached out and two fingers traced the length of his long shaft, before she wrapped her hand around him. Edward groaned and threw his head back. I watched as his hands flexed at his sides and smiled to myself.

"Stroke him. Softly, like this," I said, wrapping my hand around hers and showing her how. Extra pressure at the base and the tip and a soft grip in the middle. After a few strokes, Edward's hips bucked forward and Alice jumped a little before she giggled softly.

"Can you show me how you would handle him with your mouth, Alice?"

I watched as she looked at me over her shoulder, then looked up at Edward through her lashes and he winked at her. Moving forward, she wrapped her lips around the tip of his dick and slowly moved to engulf as much of him as she could in her mouth. He stroked her cheek and I wrapped her hair around my hand to keep it from blocking my view.

I could see the muscles flexing in his stomach and watched as she sucked and bobbed over him. I stroked her throat softly as she pushed him back as far as he would go. She gagged a little, but that was okay. I couldn't expect everyone to be able to take all of him in their mouth. I was kneeling over her, watching as she sucked him off. Thoroughly turned on by the sight below me.

I reached down to flick my clit and whimpered at the sensation. Edward was watching me and he smirked at what I was doing. I saw the tension in his jaw and I knew he was close. I took one of Alice's small hands and placed it on Edward's balls, rolling her fingers to show her the delicate handling he required there.

Edward grunted, his hips bucking forward with abandon. He leaned down, pulling at my hair and making my lips crash to his as he growled out his release, kissing and nipping at my mouth. His body shook as he let go in her mouth and I smiled against his lips. Relishing in the possessive kiss.

He backed away from her, from me, leaving us on the bed alone. I flung myself around Alice, now straddling her lap and tilted her head to look up at me. She smiled shyly and I kissed her, tasting Edward on her tongue. I pushed at her shoulders so she would lay flat and she started to scoot back on the bed.

"Did you like that?"

"He tastes like lemons," she said with a giggle and I laughed. Edward did have a lemony taste.

"We're not done with you," I stated, crawling up the bed.

"Please," she whimpered.

I toyed with her then, nipping and clawing at her skin, causing her to whimper and moan. I chanced a glance at Edward and he was hard already, the hunger in his eyes back full force. He palmed his erection in his hand and I licked my lips at the sight. He gave me that crooked smile that always made my knees weak and my head go fuzzy.

"You know what I'm going to do now, Alice?" I asked as I kissed the inside of her thigh.

"No," she sighed wistfully.

"I'm going to fuck you with my mouth while Edward fucks me with his cock."

"Oh, fun!" I had to laugh at her excitement. It was cute.

I took one long, lick up her folds and down again, snaking my tongue between them and flicking at her swollen clit. Just as Alice moaned, Edward pressed into me from behind, the tip of his dick pressing at my entrance. He pulled back and away, making me whine quietly.

I heard a small chuckle escape his lips as he pushed forward swiftly and entered me in one movement. I shrieked at the force and then moaned loudly. Not wanting to neglect Alice, I slipped two fingers into her tight pussy, making her hips buck.

"Oh, Bella," she sighed, making me smile.

I pushed her knees up, so her feet rested flat against the bed as I continued to twirl my fingers and taste her. Edward's grip on my hips was tight, I knew I would see a set of hand prints tomorrow and that thought excited me.

Alice started to moan and whimper loudly, almost like a porn track, except it wasn't cheesy or forced at all. I could tell by the way her muscles tensed and relaxed around me. The rhythm of her hips was mesmerizing, as she moved to bring herself to orgasm.

I could hear myself grunting at the force of Edward's thrusts. My mind reeling at how good he felt. It wasn't too rough, but just how I liked it. His strong hands alternating between gripping my hips and caressing my ass. At one point, he bent down and kissed the small of my back, sending a shiver up my spine.

Alice cried out, her orgasm finally came over her. I watched as she gripped the sheets and her head thrashed to the side. A breathy "shit," escaping her red lips. I massaged her clit gently, trying to watch her come down as I felt the edges of my own orgasmstart to creep up on me.

My head fell forward on the bed, I was unable to keep my eyes open any longer. A tunnel effect started to come into play and I hardly felt the bed shift as Alice moved. Then I felt her fingers trailing down my stomach and stopping at the place where Edward and I came together. I peeked my head up from the sheets and saw her sitting next to me, a look of concentration on her face. I thought I saw a flash of worry for a second, like maybe she thought I'd flip out from her touching me or worse, touching Edward, but I couldn't have cared less at that moment.

Instead, I started to thrust my hips backwards, forcing myself to push onto Edward harder as he pushed into me. It didn't take long after that before I screamed out Edward's name and bit down on the sheets in front of me, my entire body shaking from head to toe.

"Christ, Bella," Edward growled, "holy shit!" He came with force, growling as his grip on my hips was so tight, it almost hurt, but in a good way.

**X-x-X**

The three of us must have passed out because the next thing I knew, a sliver of grey light was peaking through the window and Edward and I were curled around each other, but there was no sign of Alice. I slipped out of Edward's grip and quietly walked into the living room to see her putting her clothes on.

"Hey," I whispered and she jumped a little. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay. I just thought I'd head out before you guys got up."

"Gimme a sec, I'll throw something on and take you home." She tried to protest, but I insisted. It was four in the morning and she'd have to walk or take an expensive cab. It was the least I could do.

"Thanks for last night, Bella. I had fun," she said as I pulled up to her building. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Why do you do it? The threesomes and stuff."

"It's fun," I shrugged. She nodded, seeming to contemplate something.

"You know, when you told me your rules, about touching Edward and stuff, I totally was wondering, if you were so bothered by someone else touching him, why do you do this? I thought maybe he had cheated on you before or something. Now, I think you're crazy. Sorry, but I do. The whole time, no matter what was going on, the only thing Edward saw was you. It's so obvious he would hang the moon for you."

"It's just the way I have always been. Edward understands. I need variety and fun and I like to try things."

"Do you need _other_ people for that though?" She paused. "I'm just saying, if I had an Edward - a person wholly devoted to me, enough to even entertain doing something like this, because I felt like I _needed_ it, I would find other ways to add variety and fun. I wouldn't need another person."

"Anyway. It was fun. I'll see you around, Bella," she practically sang, kissing my cheek and hopping out of the car. She floated up her stairs and then disappeared through the door with a flourish and a wave, leaving me to my thoughts.

I thought about it. In the past and even a little recently. I thought about keeping the fun to toys, positions, places, anything but other people. On the drive home, I thought about it some more. I asked myself, if Edward were to tell me right now I had to choose him or sex with other people, which would I choose. The unequivocal answer was that I would choose him. Every single time.

Even tonight. Alice was a pretty girl, she was fun, and it was important to me that she was comfortable, but my thoughts revolved around Edward and me and Edward and I constantly had to remind myself Alice was in the room. I smiled at how simple it had been, after the fact and just now, and wondered if Alice and I could just be friends. I've never tried to be friends with someone I successfully had any kind of sex with before. Except Edward, he was my best friend. My everything.

By the time I reached the front door to my flat, I had made up my mind.

I walked into the bedroom, to see Edward laying on his back, more light streaming in, dancing across the speckling of hair on his chest. I closed the curtains fully, stripped down to nothing and crawled in next to him. He immediately wrapped a toned arm around me and rolled us over to spoon. My ass nestled quite nicely against his semi-hard cock.

"Where did you go?" Edward asked, eyes closed and voice husky.

"I just wanted to make sure Alice got home okay. Did you have fun?"

"I always have fun with you, Bella," he placed a kiss on my shoulder. "Alice was a cute girl. I think she'd be great for Jasper."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Know what else?"

"No."

"I didn't get to see your face when you came last night." He started to shift around me. "You know how much I love that," he whispered, while leaning over me and kissing my ear.

"I see someone's wide awake," I laughed, reaching between us and grabbing his hard dick between us.

Edward growled and captured my lips in his, while I lined him at my entrance and then pushed my hips up as he pushed his forward.

**X-x-X**

Three months later, Edward had a gallery showing for his _BE Series_. We were both really excited about it. I had only managed to see a few of his pieces, and that was because I snuck into his studio one night and caught him off guard. I wanted to surprise him and I definitely did. He did well to distract me though. So I never got to see the rest. It took me days to get the paint and clay out of my hair.

He usually let me see most of his works in progress, but this time, he was being more cryptic than usual. I wasn't fussy about it, it's his art and he'd show me when he was ready. I just didn't think I'd be seeing the majority of the pieceswhen the rest of the city would be too.

He also had a few new buyers who were coming out. Edward's art sold remarkably well all the time, but every time he got a new buyer interested, he would get very nervous. Like a kid playing his first recital. Understandably, if Volturi Authentics got a hold of some of his pieces, Edward would end up going international. That's a _huge_ deal in art.

I slid on my shoes and grabbed my clutch, making my way out to meet Edward at the gallery. Arriving, I couldn't contain the larger than life smile on my face, seeing the large crowd that had gathered for the event.

"Bella!" I heard my name called as I walked into the door. I turned to see Alice practically skip to my side.

"Hey! Long time no see."

"I know! Jasper has been keeping me busy, school too," she giggled, adding the school part as almost an afterthought.

I haven't seen much of Alice since about two weeks after that night in my loft. Jasper was having one of his parties and I invited her, remembering what Edward had said about Alice being perfect for Jasper. I was a little concerned at first. I thought she might feel like I was just shuffling her around or that Jasper would be put off by the fact that Edward had his cock in her mouth. From personal experience, I knew guys could be funny about such trivial matters. However, they hit it off perfectly.

Jasper, being the way he is, swept Alice off her feet and they've been inseparable since. Truly, I was glad to still have Alice as a friend. Rosalie was newly pregnant and was assigned to bed rest until delivery. I didn't generally mind crawling next to her in her giant sleigh bed and watching daytime TV reruns or late night infomercials on nights when Em was away on business, but with Alice it was nice to talk about things other than being horny and not being able to have sex due to the health of the baby and gas.

"Have you seen Edward?" I asked her, craning my neck to see if I could catch a sight of him through the crowd.

"Uh, last I saw him, he was talking to a man in a really expensive pair of shoes."

Alice and I strolled around the gallery for a bit. I noticed some of Edward's earlier paintings, photos, sculptures and installations; lingering at some of my favorites like the blown glass butterfly. Eventually, we came on to the newer works. I recognized one of the sculptures of a woman laying on her side, the visage of a sheet draped across her hip. I loved the fluid lines of the piece, but the sculpture didn't include a head. Not unusual for Edward, he said his hands could never produce the beauty of the face.

We came to pieces I didn't recognize. A painting of two hands, one masculine, one feminine, the masculine hand tracing the long line that darted across the palm of the feminine hand. Another painting of a woman straddling a man, both naked and you could see the juncture of their connection. It was arousing without being perverse.

As we moved on, something occurred to me, especially once we got deeper into the exhibit.

This series was about me.

I went back, started at the beginning. The dimples on the back of the woman laying down were just like the two on my back Edward always kissed. The line being traced in the woman's hand, was just like the one on mine; it even had the same peaked arch in the middle. The same line I often woke up to Edward's fingers tracing. A painting of the shadow of a woman, back arched, nipples puckered, a rosy blush on her skin. Faceless again, but dark hair fell down her shoulders. Strong hands of a man gripping at her hips.

Everything, every photo, every sculpture, it all had something to do with me, with us.

I stood frozen in place, Alice was talking, but I wasn't listening. Then I sighed, coming out of my thoughts, when I felt a strong pair of arms encircle my waist. I hadn't realized it, but I was standing in front of a painting of a mirror reflecting this exact same pose, but in the nude. Right down to the crescent shaped scar that rested on the wrist of the woman encircling the man's hands. The same scar I had on my wrist from an animal bite I got as a teenager.

"Bella?" He said softly in my ear, "Earth to Bella."

"Edward, I..."

"What?"

"I don't think I understand." I couldn't quite articulate what I was trying to say, but I knew I needed him to explain.

"What do you mean? You've been my muse for quite a while Bella. You didn't know?"

"I knew some pieces, but I didn't...I mean, a whole series?"

"This series is about us. About us being together as Bella and Edward, my _BE Series_." He grabbed my hand and led me through the exhibit. Explaining how this series has been in progress for quite a while, over a year, sharing how this was how he saw us, saw me, and he was now able to share it with me, because I chose him. Only him.

What Alice had said to me that night so many months ago stuck with me. She was the last person I ever invited to our bed.

_"I need you to know, Bella, I would never force you to choose," he said to me the night I opened up about my decision. _

_"I'm making this choice for me, for us. You are all I will ever need," I replied before straddling him and feeding him champagne and oysters in the nude._

I knew it was the right choice, that I didn't actually need anyone else. I could embrace my sexuality in other ways and fully commit all of me to Edward. Finally.

The night progressed, and I watched my Renaissance Man mingle and socialize, dazzling people with his smile and award winning personality. He was good at it and watching him was always a definite turn on. Alice and Jasper came by to let me know they were leaving. I gave them each a kiss goodbye, watching as they walked away, Jasper's hand firmly gripping Alice's ass, and stood with Chelsea, Edward's agent.

"Here comes our artist now," she smiled. I turned to see Edward strolling in our direction. He smiled at me before giving me a kiss, then turned to Chelsea and they talked business for a bit.

Volturi Authentics bought a few of his pieces and he sold some elsewhere. He was really excited. The crowd had thinned out and I knew we would be leaving soon.

"Ready?" He turned to me.

"Sounds like we need to celebrate," I stated, patting his waist with the hand I snaked around him.

'Mmm," he hummed, "what did you have in mind?"

"Well, I got a delivery today."

"Oh yeah? What?"

"The sex swing you wanted."

Edward's eyes were alight with excitement, before he leaned down and whispered in my ear, "so are you going to swing or push?"

* * *

A/N

**Thanks for reading!**

**xx**

There are six outfits for this o/s. They can all be found on my blog (http:{/}{/}www{dot}snshyne{dot}com

This is complete and will not be continued.


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